Leopard Gecko Clean-Up Crew

I was sent a question regarding isopods in a leopard gecko tank, “My parents are concerned that my clean-up crew (powder blue and dwarf white isopods) will smell. Is this true? And is this a good clean-up crew for this species and tank?” Personally, I have never known the clean-up crew to smell, they tend to be the ones that remove the smell from the tank. I must admit, I have yet to successfully keep custodians in my leopard gecko tanks, granted I’ve only tried once or twice with powder blue isopods (Porcellionides pruinosus). The only other species I have kept with my leopard geckos are Zophobas morio - the adult stage of a morio worm, these lasted a few weeks, on some occasions a few months, but they did very little cleaning, and I had to always remove my leopard gecko’s waste.

From what I have read, Porcellio ornatus seems to be the recommended species to keep with leopard geckos as they can deal with the drier environment. Deep substrate and areas of moisture are recommended when attempting to keep isopods in a vivarium. For best results, you may also want to provide food such as a leaf litter, or pelleted food like Custodian Fuel.

Click here to watch the video I did in collaboration with Eco Logic Gecko, all about building and maintaining a successful bioactive leopard gecko tank.